Five Questions for week 2:

This week, questions are from Dr. Psych, and answers are from The Juice.  We'll switch it up next week.

1. How will Michael Vick perform when Detroit has a week to scheme for him?

Detroit can scheme? That’s news to me! I (like the rest of America) think this is a perfect matchup for Vick in first start with the Eagles. He’s a veteran, and knows exactly how teams try to counter QBs with wheels. Detroit will spy him with their fastest outside LB or even a strong safety, trying to mirror him and prevent his escaping the pocket for long runs. This does one of two things: it leaves the secondary a man short, so Vick can either try to hold in the pocket a bit longer and pick them apart or run lots of quick underneath routes to use attack the depleted backfield like a running game; or the spy leaves the defense short a pass rusher, again giving Vick extra time to find the open man. If he can display some veteran patience, Vick can have a very successful passing day. Plus, you know he’ll break off a couple of nice runs when the spy gets caught up in traffic, or Vick just makes him miss with his athleticism. Detroit’s one wild card: the big, talented rookie DT Suh could collapse the pocket, forcing Vick to make some mistakes, either taking off on the run early, or throwing the ball up for grabs.

2. 5 division winners from last year lost their first games of the season: Dallas, Minnesota, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, and San Diego. Which team is most likely to recover and win their division again? Which team is least likely?

For most likely, I’m going with Indianapolis, despite the ass-whooping dropped on them by a feisty Houston team, and the dominant performance by the Titans in week 1. Indy has veteran leadership, talent, and experience on offense, and their small but quick defense still matches up well against certain teams (if they can withstand the loss of S Bob Sanders . . . AGAIN!). They have a lot of trouble when they get pushed around (see: the Houson game), but when they strike early and play with a lead, they’re still tough to beat. If they’re 4-2 by week 6, they’ll take the division. San Diego can pull it together based on the weakness of the other teams in their division, but there sure wasn’t much impressive about their week 1 performance, and the attitude of QB Rivers leaves a lot to be desired. Minnesota is still incredibly talented and I like them to make the playoffs, but, as always, they go as Favre goes. If he can elevate his game, they’re a 13-3 team, if not, GB looks more than solid enough to take the North. Dallas has a shot, because their division is so psychotic, but I’d call it a gambler’s chance at 25%. It all depends on that shake O-line giving Romo enough time to gel with his receivers, and Dez Bryant not turning out to be the basket case I think he is. Least likely to win their division (or many games at all) has to be Cincy. If Baltimore is half as strong as everyone makes them out to be, they’ve got the AFC North locked up right now. And if Big Ben can keep his hands to himself for three more weeks, and come back to a 2-2 or 3-1 Steelers team, the Bengals may be giving the Browns a run for the basement. I’m not even going to mention the prospect of the T.O./Ochocinco blowup looming in the near future if QB Carson Palmer doesn’t remove his head from his ass in Week 2.

3. There are still 3 prominent hold-outs: Vincent Jackson, Marcus McNeil, and Logan Mankins. Which one of these players does it make the most sense to trade for? Which team will trade for the player?

Asking a former O-linemen a question like this is a setup. Of course I think Mankins would be the best player for any team to pick up. Unfortunately, offensive line schemes are complex and take a lot of time to learn. It’s also important for a line to work well as a unit, and that’s hard to do with a new group in the middle of a season. I think Mankins is back on the NE line within the month. Jackson, on the other hand, will be a hot commodity. Lots of teams will be looking for WR’s as their offenses sputter, or as their own WR corps are depleted by injury. Jackson’s suspension will also be 3 games less for another team than for SD (due to some ridiculous NFL rule), so it makes sense for SD to trade him. I’d look for him to be picked up by a struggling contender with weak WR’s sometime soon. Can anyone say Minnesota?

4. These three teams won in week 1 (Jax over Denver, NY Giants over Carolina, Seattle over San Fran). Are they better than we thought or are the teams they beat worse than we thought?

In the first two cases, my initial impression is that we’ve seen poor performances by Denver and Carolina. Both teams have QB situations I don’t envy, and neither has a stellar defense, to say the least. I think Jacksonville will finish last in a strong AFC South, but NYG has a chance to put together a run in an NFC East full of questions. I’m not even close to sold on their chances, though. Seattle is a bit of a different story, however, for two reasons. First, in spite of their performance, I can’t bring myself to think SF stinks. I’ll probably have to take that back in two weeks when San Fran is 0-3, but right now, I think that’s a quality win for the Seahawks. The other reason Seattle might have a decent season is that their division is undoubtedly weak. Arizona has no QB, San Fran is completely unproven (and has no QB either), and St. Louis is terrible (but may have the best QB in the division, if Bradford can stay healthy and learn quickly). It’s possible Seattle could win the division, but I can’t see them going anywhere in the playoffs.

5. Juice, as you know, Dallas-Fort Worth will be hosting the Superbowl a few miles from my house. Which Superbowl match-up would be the biggest disaster for the hotel-restaurant industry in Dallas-Fort Worth?

NFC:

Green Bay- budget conscious Wisconsiner's fill up the budget motels. Too frightened by the sun they stay in their rooms all weekend.

Minnesota- This star crossed franchise is cynical that their fans decide to stay home because they are certain Brett Favre will throw a pick for touchdown in the final minutes of the game.

Dallas- Scalpers rejoice as local fans take the money they save on hotels and dining out and pour it into the secondary ticket market.

AFC:

Indy- cheap Hoosiers decide to skip their 3rd Superbowl in five years

Cincinnati- do the Bengals even have any fans left?

San Diego- Can't even sell out their own stadium even though they've won the division like 5 straight years. Charger fans can find no reason to leave Southern California for Dallas

I have to say, Green Bay sounds like a tough call at first, but their fan-base is rabid, and they’re big drinkers. Drinking leads directly to spending too much money on food and entertainment. Maybe the high-end hotels and restaurants suffer, but Applebee’s has a field day, and the RV lots have a huge week. Minnesota is similar, but Favre brings additional interest from all over the country, which could translate into a few high-roller restaurant and hotel patrons. Dallas would be toughest on hotels/restaurants in the short-term, but the business in sports bars and grocery stores (not to mention liquor stores) for all the Superbowl parties might make up for it a bit. Overall, I say Green Bay is worst, but it’s pretty hard to guess. In the AFC, it all sounds bad. San Diegans (San Diegoans? San Diegites? Ron Burgandy reference gets me extra points?) don’t ever want to leave their perfect weather, especially not in winter. Plus, as you mentioned, they don’t give a shit about their team. India fans might not be high-rollers, but they’re rabid, and their success has brought them lots of additional fans all over the country. I think they have no problem traveling and the seats go for big bucks. No, it seems like Cincy would be the toughest hit. Few fans, little tradition, and a weak economy add up to a rough time for the Dallas hotel/restaurant industry if the Bengals somehow turn it on and make a run to the Superbowl. (After last week, I give them 200-1 against!)

Lock of the Week- Atlanta +7 over Arizona. People are way too down on Atlanta after a lousy performance against Pittsburgh. I say that Pittsburgh has always rallied around adversity and had weeks to scheme against Atlanta, a luxury Arizona does not have. Arizona could have lost to the least talented team in the league (St Louis) who was starting a rookie QB. Plus they are still starting Derek Anderson the last time I checked. I think Atlanta is still a Superbowl contender and prove it with a big bounce back win 34-17.

I don’t know if I’m quite as enthusiastic about their superbowl chances after week 1, but I definitely agree that Atlanta bounces back strong against a floundering Arizona offense. Think Anderson is good for a pick-6 or two? As a Browns fan, I KNOW he is! 34-17 sounds right to me.

Upsets of the Week- There is upset potential all over the board as people over react to week one results. Baltimore is getting 3 at Cincy despite the fact that Cincy beat them twice last year and needs to play well coming home. Plus intra-divson games are always tight low scoring affairs. Dallas is getting 9 against the Bears but they are still poorly coached, have a shaky O-line and a head case for a kicker. The Bears aren't great, but they will be slinging it all over the field with Mike Martz calling plays for Jay Cutler. Bears cover late. Houston getting 3 on the road at Washington. Huh? This is both a let-down game (after beating hated rival Indy) and a looking ahead game (in-state rival Dallas next week). Houston has never showed any consistency as a franchise and until I see it, I can't pick them to go on the road and cover against Washington in a hostile environment. But I save the best for last. KC to go into Cleveland and beat the Browns straight-up. People called the win over San Diego a fluke, but I think KC is for real. They improved through the draft (Eric Berry and Dexter McCluster), at Offensive coordinator (Charlie Weis), and through continuity (another year for Matt Cassel in the system). They have decent offensive play makers: Charles, Dwyane Bowe, Thomas Jones, and Dexter McCluster. Cleveland meanwhile is imploding. They have a lame duck coach (Mangini) and QB (Delhomme unless Seneca Wallace plays) and know that any chance they had at pulling together a good season went out the window with the terrible loss to Tampa Bay.

I would normally hate the KC call, but the Browns looked so awful last week, I think you could be right. It comes down to one thing: Cleveland’s D-line. Can they plug a few holes and slow down Charles? I sure hope so, but like my Grandma always said: “Hope in one hand and shit in the other. What do you have? A handful of shit.” An apt metaphor for my beloved Brownies’ season.